Ben-Gvir-backed 'muezzin bill' to limit mosque loudspeakers passes preliminary Knesset reading

The “muezzin bill,” which calls to address “unreasonable noise,” passed with 50 lawmakers in favor and 36 against. It will now be brought to a Knesset committee for advancement and still requires three more readings to come into effect. Critics of the bill argue it would restrict religious practice for Muslims.

It passed its preliminary reading after a heated debate in the plenum in which Ben-Gvir and members of his party clashed with lawmakers from the Arab parties.

Advancing similar legislation has been attempted during past government terms, receiving strong opposition from lawmakers in the Arab parties.

Mosque loudspeakers are used to broadcast the Muslim call to prayer, which is issued five times a day.

Defending the bill, sponsor Fogel said the proposal was “not a political issue,” arguing that excessive noise from mosque loudspeakers “is a harm to public health and quality of life.”

“It is unacceptable that residents continue to suffer systematic violations of the law,” he added.

Ben-Gvir also claimed that residents had suffered from excessive noise for years. “For years and years, there has been lawlessness. Governance begins with noise,” he said.

Opponents of the legislation have argued that it would infringe on freedom of religion and have condemned it as discriminatory.

Tel Aviv-Yafo Deputy Mayor Amir Bedran called the bill’s advancement “a worrying and dangerous move that directly harms freedom of religion and the fabric of shared life in Israel.”

He said, “This is legislation driven by racist motives that targets an entire public as being harmful. In Tel Aviv-Yafo, quality of life is measured by acceptance of the other and the different.”

MK Ofer Cassif (Hadash-Ta’al) also condemned the bill, saying, “The muezzin does not disturb their ears; it disturbs their racism.”

He added that the legislation seeks to silence “another people, another culture, another language, and another religion.”

The legislation proposes to establish a prohibition on the installation and operation of public speakers in mosques unless a permit has been obtained.

In addition, it is proposed to grant police officers the authority to enter a location where a breach has been reported, for the stated purpose of stopping the noise.

The bill also sets fines for violations, ranging from NIS 10,000 to NIS 50,000 depending on the circumstances.

The explanatory notes of the legislation state that, in Israel and many countries around the world, “one of the most severe sources of noise pollution is the use of loudspeaker systems in mosques throughout the day.

“For decades, the public has been exposed to intolerable noise that harms both health and quality of life, yet the phenomenon continues.”

The explanatory notes add that, according to testimonies from across the country following the October 7 Hamas massacre in 2023, the volume of mosque broadcasts increased significantly, allegedly intending to express solidarity with Hamas and harm the quality of life of Israeli citizens.

The bill’s proposal argues that in many Muslim countries, such as Egypt and Saudi Arabia, there are clear restrictions on noise levels, and “some countries have almost entirely prohibited the use of loudspeaker systems in mosques”

The party also said that the legislation would “grant significant enforcement tools to law enforcement authorities in order to act against unreasonable noise from mosque muezzins, which Israeli citizens have reportedly suffered from for many years.”